Smile
by Lapsing-Sanity
Summary: It was just like Lucina to be alone on a night when everyone else was celebrating and having fun. (One shot, a bit of Lucina x Yarne and Chrom x Avatar)


A gentle sigh escaped Lucina as she watched pair after pair dance by, gliding and twirling across the lea while the musicians her father had hired specifically for this occasion played out a lively minuet. Once again, she thought with regret, she had found herself all alone on a day when everyone else traveled in groups of two, groups which were content to shut the rest out ad focus only on each other. Her watchful gaze trained on one couple in particular: in the very center of the whirling crowd were her father and mother, Prince Chrom and the master tactician Luna. She had never seen Luna in a dress before, but she thought to herself that her mother, clad in deep blue with her smooth brown hair tied back in her characteristic pigtails, was at the moment the most beautiful woman in all of Ylisse. And Chrom, the one who had always been at Luna's side no matter how dire the situation, was a bold and powerful figure who smiled and held his wife close as they danced like they hadn't a care in the world.

"Sis? Are you okay?" Lucina jumped in shock when she recognized the presence she, being absorbed in her own thoughts, had formerly failed to notice.

"Morgan," she greeted, taking a deep breath to calm her overreacting nerves. "Of course I'm alright. Why do you ask?"

"You're standing here by yourself, crying." Her younger brother's brown eyes were quizzical. Lucina lifted her fingers to her face and was surprised to discover that his words were true- fresh tears had begun to spring into the corners of her eyes.

"Yes," she murmured as he continued to stare at her with concern, an expression she had rarely ever seen associated with the carefree, cheerful Morgan. "Yes, I suppose I am."

"Okay..." Morgan raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Our parents." Lucina scrubbed the tears away with the cuff of her sleeve, refusing to allow any more to escape. "I have missed them with all of my heart. Even now that I'm here, in the future I left they were still both dead." Then she opened her eyes and fixated on her brother's face, the youthful features that had yet to be hardened by battle, oblivious to the terrors still to come. "But I suppose you could hardly understand. The future you hail from is not in ruins."

"Maybe not, but you're forgetting that I can't remember anything of my past- or is it my future, now?- except for tiny bits and pieces." The tactician cracked a weak grin, which was full of sadness for his sister as well as himself. "So I'm missing something to. Sure, the people in my time aren't all dead, but for me most of them aren't there at all."

"You're right," Lucina relented. "I'm sorry, I was being selfish."

"S'okay." Morgan stepped forward to hug his sister. "Everyone's gotta feel sorry for themselves once in awhile. Especially you, Sis."

Lucina was both surprised and touched by the warm gesture, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. She felt a sudden surge of affection for her brother, and she knew that the future he came from, a time where their parents were alive and well, as entirely hers to protect. The weight of her responsibilities was still heavy on her shoulders, but at that very moment she couldn't have cared less.

"Thank you," she said as they pulled apart. "You really do take after Mother."

Morgan's entire face lit up with what he considered an enormous praise. Then his gaze drifted to a spot next to her head and he said, "It looks like someone wants to talk to you."

Turning on her heels, Lucina spotted Panne and Lon'qu's son Yarne staring at her through the crowd. When her eyes meet his he blushed and turned his back, tugging with embarrassment at his long ears. Lucina chuckled softly and waved around the dancers to approach the timid taguel.

"Hello, Yarne." She smoothed the skirt of her dress, internally wondering why she suddenly felt the urge to act ladylike. "It's a beautiful night, isn't it?"

Y-yeah, it is!" agreed Yarne with a vigorous nod. "Much nicer than it ever is in the future." He continued to fidget nervously, very much like he always did when confronted by an opponent. Lucina knew he felt threatened, but why was that? She had no intention of hurting or frightening him, he should have known that.

"I was wondering, perhaps I could have the next dance?" she pressed.

"Really?" The taguel's eyes brightened happily. "Dance with you? Yeah, I'd love that!" By this time, the current song was drawing to a close. The last note had barely a moment to linger in the cool night air before the musicians launched into their next number, an upbeat, traditional Ylissean piece. Yarne cautiously offered his hand to Lucina, who accepted it eagerly, and the two spun into the mob of dancers. As the world reeled by around her, she stared into Yarne's sheepishly grinning face and laughed. The sound was nearly lost in the excitement of the music; only two figures were near enough to catch it, Yarne and the boy who now stood alone in the dew-dampened grass as Lucina once had.

"There you go, Sis," whispered Morgan to no one. "Why can't you laugh like that all of the time?"


End file.
